Juliette: A New Woman
by BilliePPE
Summary: Mt. Horizon is closed and Juliet is home. Everything is fine until her best friend tells her a secret. R&R please. Chapter 2 added!
1. Default Chapter

I've been holding up well lately. I'm home and I'm actually happy to be here. Mom is still a bitch, but Boris isn't so bad. I'm happy he's my step-dad. Everything has gotten better. I can't even remember the last time I binged or cut. That's a good thing. I'm really excited about getting back to school and seeing my old friends again.

I'm going to enjoy this last marking period of high school. I've missed so much of it. It's hard to believe I'll be graduating in three and a half months. It's all scary, but I'm ready for it. There's something I'm gonna miss about Mt. Horizon and I think it's probably gonna be the whole gang. We all came to become good friends by the end. I miss them so much and it's only been a couple of days. I think I miss Auggie the most. I even think I miss Shelby. I hate to admit that, but she was like a big sister to me. She was better than my real sisters to be honest. That's all kinda pathetic, I know. We were all like family. Scott, Shelby, Auggie, Daisy, Kat, Ezra, and me. Yup, just one big happy family.

It still hurts inside… you know, to be without them. Just when we were all getting along we get torn apart. Hard to believe that I lost a great boyfriend in Auggie because of what happened. Maybe we'll be together again…someday. I hope so! Anyway, my first day back is tomorrow. Wish me luck! Bye.

-Jules-

***

Sunlight poured into the open windows of Jules second floor bedroom. It was looking to be a beautiful day. It had to be at least 60 degrees already as Jules stepped out on to her balcony and stretched her body to welcome the fresh air and comforting morning light. Her long dark hair slightly flickered through the air. She enjoyed the playful breeze on her face and enjoyed the air awakening the rest of her body as it slightly rippled through her comfy cotton cartoon pajamas. Her bare feet on the concrete felt uncomfortable atop of the bits of gravel, so she moved onto the outdoor carpeting near the balcony railing.

Jules had nearly forgotten how beautiful her view was. She hadn't really been able to enjoy little things like this since coming home Friday night. A Friday night that seemed like things would never get better. Here she was though, it was a Monday morning and she was feeling pleasant again. Jules smirked at the idea of her not feeling miserable on a Monday morning. She would usually need to be dragged out of bed to go to school on a Monday morning. It was just a law of being a teenager. You had to embrace your blue Monday when it came, but not his Monday. Nope, Jules was feeling just fine.

"Jules? You getting dressed?" an exotic voice asked Jules from her bedroom door. Jules turned around to greet Esmeralda, her childhood and present day nanny. "Morning Alda," Jules said strolling back into her room and went to her dresser to pick out clothes before she took a shower. "Breakfast in fifteen kiddo," Esmeralda said through a warm smile. Alda left Jules to get ready and so she could finish helping with breakfast down in the kitchen. 

Jules felt great after showering and primping in the mirror. She hopped downstairs in a pair of cuffed baggy blue jeans that fell perfectly over her Nike cross trainers, and a tight purple tee that was lit with artistic designs of white flowers across her stomach and chest. She wore her hair down and it bounced along with her as she arrived at the breakfast table.

She happily flounced down in an antique wooden chair and greeted her mother and "father" with a bright smile. "Good morning mom, morning Boris." Her mother didn't say anything, but the always polite Boris did. "Good morning."

Jules lost herself in the delicious smells of breakfast wafting its way from the kitchen. "Smells good, what are we having?" Jules asked the two figures who sat at opposite ends of the long wooden table. Both Boris and Jules mother didn't answer for a moment. There was obviously some tension about food, considering that was the reason Jules was sent to Mt. Horizon in the first place.

Before either of them could answer, Alda s scooped in with a breakfast and placed it in front of Jules with the answer "Blueberry pancakes and scrambled eggs." 

"Yum, my favorite," Jules eagerly snapped open a napkin from the table and placed it on her lap. "I thought you could use something special on your first day of school," Alda said, adjusting her shapely glasses. "You know me too well Alda, thanks," Jules said as she grabbed a fork from the table and dug into what seemed to be her first official meal back home.

It must have taken Jules a couple of minutes to be nearly done with her breakfast when she felt her parents eyes on her. She glanced up and sensed a bit of concern as she quickly glanced back at her disappearing pancakes. _Are they okay? Jeez, they act like I'm just going to jam my finger down my throat and have a breakdown right here. _Juliette smiled downward at her food at the funny image. And it _was_ funny. _In the end if you can't laugh at all the problems you've had, you have to wonder if you have really gotten over them._ And Jules was over them, very much so. She was ready to move on with her life. 

When she had finished her breakfast she gave the pair at the table one last smile. "Well, I don't wanna be late on my first day back to school." Jules made her way around the table to give her mom a peck on the cheek. "Bye mom, bye Boris." 

Jules lastly went into the kitchen and gave Alda a huge hug. "Good luck Senorita Strong," Alda squeezed Jules tightly in her arms. _I've missed her nicknames. _Jules squeezed back. "Thanks Alda," Jules said to one of her best friends in the world. 

A vibrant and energized Juliette skipped to the front door where her packed, off the shoulder messenger/book bag was waiting for her next to the small table she put the keys to her Jeep on. 

She slid into the drivers side of her car and buckled her seatbelt. She adjusted the rearview mirror and looked into the other mirror to her left. _ This is your chance to show them what you're made of. _Juliette prepped herself. She gave herself a coy smile. _This is what it has come down to. _

Jules turned on the car and slipped in her Cardigans "Gran Turismo" CD and blasted it, as she pulled out of her driveway, singing along to the first track streaming from her speakers. 

***

A glitzy entrance, when going to Johnson High School is crucial. Everything is looked at when you make your way through those doors of that rich, snobby building. That kind of thing didn't matter to Juliette anymore. Juliette was entering the last quarter of her senior year. Soon none of this would matter, because she would be in the real world again. 

Jules entered the school parking lot and found a good parking space. Before she stepped out of her car Jules touched up her lip gloss one last time in the rearview mirror. She then grabbed her book bag and was on her way.

As Jules walked down the wide pathway entrance to the main lobby of Johnson High, Jules could feel eye balls following her. She turned her head right to see a blonde preppy couple making out in a huge German import of a car. They ceased their make out session to cast their gazes on Juliette. Uncomfortable, Jules kept on walking until she reached the schools main entranceway. A bit to Jules surprise, she found her old buddy Bonnie sitting on a wooden bench with two Starbucks coffees in her hands.

Juliette's lips parted to form a huge smile as she walked up to Bonnie. Bonnie had to be Jules best friend, other than Alda. It was pathetic to have Alda as one of her best friends, but Juliette didn't care. Bonnie smiled back at Jules as she approached. Bonnie's loosely curled brown hair hung freely down to her waist and met her cowboy belt buckle and faded denim bellbottoms. Her tight black tee read the famous lyric, "I know what boys like."

"Wow, someone's styles changed," Juliette said still smiling. Bonnie shrugged her shoulders and gave Juliette a look over. "Well, lets say it's been a year and a half for the both of us." Bonnie handed Jules one of the Starbucks coffee containers. "A vanilla soy latte. Don't worry it's decaf. I figured you'd be excited enough today." Jules hadn't had a soy latte since she had been home. She had switched to it when she found out how many calories coffee had in it.

Jules didn't want to be rude by hesitating an acceptance of the offering from her best bud, so she snatched it up quickly and gave Bonnie a warm hug. "It's been too long, Bonnie," Jules said almost in tears. "I would have called over the weekend, but I was too much of a wimp to pick up the phone," Bonnie replied, almost in tears herself. "Nothings changed about you Bon," Jules laughed. "I saved all your letters. I counted them on Saturday. It came to a grand total of 168," Juliette continued, getting sentimental on her friend. "Really?!? Do you know how much money that is in stamps?" Bonnie joked. They both laughed, sighed, caught their breath, and sat down together on the bench and began to enjoy their beverages.

"So how does it feel so far?" Bonnie asked. Juliette only looked at Bonnie for a second, mesmerized by how much her friend had grown up and matured. Then a moment of sadness came over her, as she realized she was kind of upset about missing so much of her friends life. "It's weird-so much has changed around here. Everything looks different when you've been gone for so long." Bonnie pondered that reply for a moment. "It must be different living on a mountain for so long." Bonnie took a sip of her warm, but steamy drink. 

"It was a nice change of pace," Juliette commented. "Well you look great," Bonnie tried to gradually change the subject. "Thanks, that must be why everyone is looking at me," Jules smiled and looked up at a few scattered students staring at her as they went into school.

"Are you kidding? You're like a celebrity here. You're the most interesting thing to happen to this snobby town," Bonnie explained. "Yeah, it's not every student who passes out in PE because she just finished puking her brains out 30 minutes before class," Juliette said lifelessly into the air in front of her as she watched more students stare at her on their way into the school. Bonnie looked at her friend with a smidge of concern. "Hey, I'm supposed to be the morbid one in this friendship." That lightened the mood. Jules laughed at her friends joke. Maybe I should be the snobby one instead," Bonnie joked again. Jules laughter morphed into seriousness for a moment. 

"I'm not that kind girl anymore, Bonnie." Juliette stared Bonnie down, ensuring she was a changed girl. A girl who no longer cared about popularity... partially due to the whole school finding out she was a bulimic head case, but mostly because of Mt. Horizon. Even though her time there was cut short she had been completely enlightened. Juliette now knew what was important in life, and it wasn't high school superlatives. 

"I know. It was only a matter of time before you grew out of that whole 'I'm more popular than you phase'," Bonnie said looking at her watch. "Mt Horizon will do that to you."

It was obviously time to go to first period by the look of the stumbling crowd, competing to get into the school lobby. "You ready for this?" Bonnie asked, playfully, as if they were about to get on some kind of roller coaster ride. "No sweat." Juliette looked at her unfinished container of latte and took a few gulps. It tasted as good as Jules remembered. "Thanks for the nourishment, Bon."

"No problem. I figured you needed one after a year and a half."

"Yeah," Juliette said, rising to her feet along with her friend, and joined the crowd in route to first period.

***

English class with Mr. Froman was a breeze for Johnson High students. You take the first five minutes of class to do the assigned essay and talk for the rest of the period. That's exactly what Bonnie and Juliette planned to do. The two finished their essays on socialism in Sweden and chatted about the past year and a half afterwards.

"Tell me about Shelby." Bonnie started. "You talked a lot about her in your letters. Something about her being a prostitute?" Bonnie asked as she moved her desk next to Jules. Jules giggled at Bonnie's innocence. She had to admit she felt more mature than Bonnie was. Juliette felt stronger after Mt Horizon. She had seen an amplified version of the real world and she had grown a thicker skin. There was so much the people of this town were unexposed to.

"I didn't like her at first, because we were competing for this guy," Juliette explained. "Scott?" Bonnie asked. "Yup."

"I have loads of pictures at home to show you," Jules smiled at Bonnie and reached out to grab a lock of her friends hair. "Your hair is so long now." Jules began to braid the piece of hair she grabbed.

As Juliette was braiding playfully, someone came up behind the two girls. "So Jules, you're back," the pretty boi jock stated. "Good to see your eyes work, Brad," Bonnie quipped before Juliette could reply to Brad's statement. _That's _some_ attitude she's giving Brad._

"Yeah, I got back Friday," Juliette replied, breaking away from the distraction Bonnie conjured up with her sudden nastiness. Juliette had never heard her friend talk to anyone that way. _It really has been a year and a half. _Then, all of a sudden, Jules caught a glimpse of Brad behind her. "Wow, Brad, you look so different. Sophomore year you were so quiet and…"

"Nerdy?" Brad asked, but answered for Juliette.

"No…"

"It's okay, I was a nerd back then," Brad said. 

Juliette could see Bonnie rolling her eyes. "Well you look great. Doesn't he look great, Bon?" Juliette asked, wondering what Bonnie would say. She obviously had some kind of problem with Brad. 

"Once a nerd, always a nerd," Bonnie said, with a shrug. "I guess I'll always have a special place in my heart for Algebraic equations," Brad joked. Juliette giggled. "Oh lord," Bonnie huffed. "Well it was good seeing you," Brad said to Juliette. "Yeah, you too."

Brad went back to his clique in the back of the classroom as Juliette decided to ask Bonnie what her deal was. "What's with you?" Bonnie just played with a few of the braids Juliette had concocted a fem minutes ago. Bonnie always played with her hair when she was hiding something. "I just don't like him. He's changed since you've been gone," Bonnie explained. 

"I'll say! He's so hott now," Juliette said, looking in Brads direction in the back of the room. She felt a little guilty checking out a guy so close to braking up with Auggie. She still had feelings for her old boyfriend.

*** 

"That's Shelby?" Bonnie asked, not really forming her thought aloud statement a question. She looked at the group of pictures, examining all of Juliette's Mt Horizon buddies. "Yup," Jules answered. "She looks kinda… unpolished, if you ask me." Bonnie set the picture down and shuffled through the dozens of others that were spread all over Juliette's floral covered bed.

"So what's with you and Brad?" Juliette zinged an unexpected question in Bonnie's direction. "You really wanna know, Juliette?" Bonnie asked candidly, still shuffling through the profusion of pics. Juliette was almost too scared to answer. Could this be something serious, or was it going to be something silly, like she didn't like his hair. Juliette could never really be sure with her best bud Bonnie. 

Bonnie lifted her head to meet Juliette's eyes. "It's no big deal, but me and Brad used to kinda date. It didn't exactly end well," Bonnie explained. "How bad? Did he pull a cliché teen after school special moment on you and tell all of his friends you were easy to get into bed?" Jules asked, jokingly of coarse. Bonnie shuttered at her friends remarkable guess. Sometimes Juliette could hit the nail on the head pretty hard. Bonnie snapped out of her shutter session to answer Juliette. "That's near perfect," Bonnie forced out a laugh.

"What??!!??" Juliette's question coming out as some sort of half laugh. Juliette couldn't believe what she had just heard. "Yup, he sweet talked me into bed with him and when he was done with me he told all his friends and hasn't really talked to me since," Bonnie explained.

Jules didn't really know what to say. She almost wanted to cry because of what had happened to her best friend while she was gone. This wouldn't have happened of she was here with her friend instead of somewhere else. "That's who I am now. I'm the slut of Johnson High," Bonnie said, going back to the pile of memories that sat in front of her. "That has to be Auggie. He looks just how you described him in your letters," Bonnie threw the conversation in another direction. Juliette didn't want to change the subject, but she knew her friend wasn't going to. "Yeah, he's cute, huh?"

*** 

I feel so damn responsible for what happened to Bonnie. If I were here this never would have happened. Me an Bonnie were a team. Nobody could hurt us when we were together. There's nothing anyone can do to hurt two best friends when their together. We used to be so strong, but I don't even know anymore. I wanna fix all of this, but I don't know how. What am I supposed to do. Everything that happened while I was gone is in the past and I can't change any of it. Maybe I can make the future better for Bonnie by approaching the past and giving it a good kick in the balls.

-Jules-

***

Jules couldn't even remember the last time she had been to a party. She didn't exactly miss the scene of it all, but what needed to be done tonight had to be done at the right time and place. A random party Brad would most likely be at was perfect for her plan. 

Jules geared up for the mission ahead in some party clothes that still fit her from sophomore year before she left. She tried on some clothes that were too big for her back then, but fit perfectly now. Juliette decided to go with an all black ensemble. A spaghetti strapped halter top covered by a tight leather jacket for the nippy night air of spring. The bottom half of her body would have to bare a little cold air, being covered by a tight skirt that fell just past Jules' naked knees. The skirt was slit on both sides half way up her thighs, making it easy for Juliette to move around. Juliette thought it would be fun to clash the saucy outfit with a pair of black army boots that stood somewhat tall, but didn't exactly reach her knees.

Juliette gave herself the classic female look over in the mirror. She turned around to see if everything checked out. The outfit was perfect for tonight. The only thing that was left was the hair and makeup. Juliette went to her dresser to lightly apply some sexy black eye makeup and cherry lip gloss. She brushed her long dark hair straight to perfection. She blotted her lips a bit with a piece of tissue and was ready to go. 

Juliette strolled down stairs to say goodbye to Alda in the kitchen before she left for the party. "Don't wait up Alda," Jules peaked her head in the kitchen, where Alda was placing some sort of whipped topping on a desert. "Wanna try my new masterpiece before you go kiddo?" Alda asked. "I've been working on it for a while," Alda continued. Juliette could never resist one of Alda's deserts. Juliette always thought Alda should have been some sort of pastry chef with her own restaurant. "Okay," Juliette answered. Juliette pulled up to the counter on a stool, where Alda was already cutting a slice of the pie she had prepared. She set it on a saucer with a fork and passed it over to Juliette.

"So what's the plan for the night?" Alda asked Jules, covering the pie with a plastic top. She never ate her own work before someone else tasted it first. "I'm just going to make an appearance at this party in The Valley." Juliette cut into her snack with her fork and lifted it to eyelevel. There was the classic graham cracker crust and a layer of Jell-O of all different colors, then a layer of some sort of cake on top of that, then the whipped topping. She put it into her mouth and her taste buds exploded with excitement. She had never tasted anything quite so flavorful in her life. The mystery cake was revealed to be cheesecake, which much to Juliette's surprise, was the perfect combo with all the different flavors of Jell-O. 

"Wow!" Juliette exclaimed, choking on the enjoyment of this wonderful piece of art. "I dunno how you keep out doing yourself, Alda. One day your gonna get like pastry block or something, if you keep making things that taste this good," Juliette said inhaling another piece of the cake. "I sure hope not," Alda laughed. "But you really think it's good?" Alda continued. "Hell yeah!" Juliette finished off her piece and got ready to leave. "Be sure to save me a piece from the rest of the crew. Something tells me this is gonna be a new addiction of mine," Juliette laughed referring to the rest of the kitchen staff who also loved Alda's crazy concoctions. "You got it," she said, happily. "Have fun tonight, Juliette. It's your first party in a long time. You should enjoy yourself."

"Don't worry. I will." Juliette gave Alda a peck on the cheek and was out the door, on her way to the party.

***

A grand entrance at a party was also a must in Juliette's home town. So when Juliette pulled up to the artsy looking house, whose lard was already littered with plastered teens and red and blue Dixie cups, she strutted her stuff like there was no tomorrow. Men all over the world could have trembled at Juliette's feet just from seeing this fierce walk. Juliette needed to find Brad fast and get this job done so she picked up the pace to the house entrance way. 

As soon as Juliette entered the house she could see half sober/half drunk faces staring at her lifelessly. Rock music was blaring from speakers that were planted all over the house. This definitely wasn't Juliette's scene, but like Abba say, she was for sure the master of this scene. 

Men drooled and women turned green with envy or nausea. Juliette walked confidently around the house, searching for Brad and his clique. She eventually found the clique in some sort of family room, moshing. She didn't see Brad however. Juliette was growing impatient and was a few times tempted to groove to the heavy music a little bit. But this was a business call. _I just wanna do this and leave._ Juliette thought to herself.

_A-ha! _Juliette suddenly realized where Brad could be. It was all too obvious that Brad was in one of the bedrooms upstairs with some hussy. _This could be better than I expected._ Juliette ventured upstairs to where she would soon need to brace herself for a skin-a-max type scenario. She opened one of the closed bedroom doors hoping to find Brad with one of the sluts of Johnson High. Instead she found a drunk blonde girl with a black muscular jock type getting it on. "Sorry!" Juliette shielded her eyes, closing the door and left to the next bedroom. 

_This better be the one. I don't wanna see too many more of those. _Juliette braced herself for another interesting encounter and opened the door. There Brad was, with mousy brown haired girl who looked like a freshman in Jules opinion. _Let the show begin, _Juliette thought to herself. 

"Oh-my-God!" Brad and the mouse were startled by a louder than normal Juliette. "How could you do this?!?! Your are such a dog! You said I was the only girl for you, you damn liar!" Juliette exclaimed flakily. The mousy girl pushed Brad off from his missionary position and gathered her clothes and assembled herself quickly. She ran past Juliette in the doorway crying. The mouse could obviously put two and two together. 

Brad put his pants on and zipped them up. People were gathering in the hallway of the second floor to see what was going on. "Why did you do that?" Brad said face to face with Juliette. "Are you crazy or something!" he continued. _Slap. _"No! You're the crazy one if you thought you could cheat on me!" Juliette kept up the charade. She turned away from Brad and walked maniacally down the hallway to the stair case. She could hear Brad following her. Brad grabbed Juliette's arm roughly and spun her around mid stairwell completion. "What the hell are you doing!" Brad yelled, bringing in an audience of sobering partiers. What the hell are you doing. You said you loved me and I come here and find you f*%!ing some freshman. I trusted you. Juliette said loud enough for everyone to hear. Everyone in the house had their eyes on Juliette and Brad now. 

"I thought we had something Brad," Juliette started, sounding hysterical. "We told each other everything. Your sixth toe, your fetish for big hairy man, your masturbation addiction. I thought you trusted me." Juliette could hear the crowd echo with the questions "Did she say what I think she just said?" and "Is she serious?". It was all coming together now. Juliette's plan was just getting warmed up and it was already working. She leaned in to Brad and whispered in his ear. "You didn't think you could just f#%k Bonnie over and walk away, did you?"

Juliette backed away and walked down the rest of the stairs and headed for the front door. "You crazy bitch!" Brad yelled down the stairs after Juliette. He ran up behind, grabbed her arm again, turned her around, and slapped her once to the floor. The crowd of teens was were baffled. Brad pinned Juliette down and readied his fist in the air, ready to attack Juliette. Before he could a muscular jock grabbed his wrist and threw him against a near by wall. He helped Juliette up. "Are you okay?" he asked, being every bit the gentlemen. Juliette shook her head. "Not after what he did to me," Juliette said referring to his alleged affair. The crowd was probably thinking she was referring to his enraged attack on Juliette. "You should probably get out of here," the kind jock said. Juliette nodded her head meekly.

The jock turned around and looked down at Brad on the floor. He reached down to the floor and picked him up by his shirt with both hands and brought him to his feet. "You wanna slap someone around, try doing it to someone your own size!" the jock threw Brad into another room where she could hear the classic sounds of someone getting jumped by a group of football players. Juliette walked out the front door as the crowd that was focusing on her went into the other room. The couldn't resist watching Brad get torn apart. Juliette could hear the word "fight" being chanted over and over again one her way to her car. _My plan worked perfectly. Almost too perfectly. I didn't know I would feel this bad about hurting someone who hurt my best friend. I thought I would feel better than this. _

Part II coming real soon! Look out for it. 


	2. Chapter 2

"You what?!?!" Bonnie yelled over the phone with Juliette. "What?" Juliette said innocently and naively. "I thought you would have wanted to get Brad back. I've ruined his reputation just like he ruined yours. No big deal," Juliette explained. "You don't understand what you've done, do you?" Bonnie said, sounding tired all of a sudden. "I know exactly what I've done. I gave that bastard what he deserves," Juliette said nonchalantly. "What's wrong with you? Why are you acting like this? I've never seen this side of you before, Juliette, and I have to say it's scaring me," Bonnie's voice began to wake up, becoming sharp with anger and fear. "You came back from Mt. Horizon and I thought you had transformed from that snobby popular girl you used to be, to a genuinely nice person. I was proud of you for changing, but now you've got this take no crap from anyone, attitude," Bonnie said pouring her heart out to her best friend.

Juliette took in everything Bonnie had just said. She was completely right. Juliette knew there was something wrong with herself. She had an overwhelming need to fix what had happened to Bonnie. She felt responsible for it all and she just wanted to fix it. 

"I guess I've changed since Mt. Horizon. Auggie taught me to be strong while I was there and I dunno what happened after that. I've always been like this though," Juliette admitted. "No you haven't. You've never done anything like this before. This has to be the most ballsy thing you've ever done," Bonnie was starting to calm down. 

"That's not what I mean. I mean… I've always felt torn between moods. One minute I used to be a confident popular snob and the next I would feel completely pathetic and depressed. It's always like that with me. I can never control it. Now I'm this girl who's torn between being extremely nice or extremely confident," Juliette sounded dead about the situation she was in. It was time to face it. Juliette could tell there was something wrong with her, and for years she had been too scared to deal with it. Whatever it was, it went slightly deeper than anorexia, bulimia, or self mutilation. This demon inside Juliette had been inside her for awhile and it was time to deal with it.

"What are you saying?" Bonnie asked, naively. It was times like this where Juliette felt alone. There was no one to talk to because no one knew what was going on inside Juliette's head. Sure, Bonnie was a damn good best friend, but it wasn't enough. Bonnie couldn't help Juliette with this. This was something Juliette had to deal with herself. She was on her own with this one. On her own again, just like she was before going to Mt. Horizon. It all seemed to be flooding back into Juliette's life. All the things she had tried so hard to keep under control. She didn't know what to do. Now that there was no more Mt. Horizon, what was she supposed to do? 

Juliette snapped out of her trance, realizing Bonnie had asked her a question. "Nothing, I'm just saying I need to work on that short fuse of mine. It's probably because I'm so tired. I haven't been sleeping to well since I've come home from Horizon," Juliette half lied. She was having trouble sleeping, but that was about the only thing true about what she just said. "I'll buy that," Bonnie sounded convinced. "You have looked tired lately. This is probably some kinda backlash from lack of a good nights rest," Bonnie continued. "Yeah, I'm feeling really crappy. I guess I just snapped when you told me about Brad. I don't think I would have done this if I was rested, to be honest." Juliette wasn't being honest. "Well lets make sure it doesn't happen again, alright?" Bonnie was starting to sound normal again. 

"Absolutely," Juliette answered

"So we're cool?" 

"We're cool."

That was one problem fixed for Juliette, but it wasn't the worst one that needed sprucing up. "I'll see you later," Juliette closed. "Yup, cya," Bonnie ended.

***

"Everyone is giving us weird looks," Bonnie said, as her and Juliette walked down Johnson Highs crowded halls to lunch. Unfortunately, Juliette and Bonnie had the same lunch period as Brad and his huge group of friends. This had to be the hardest part of Juliette' day. "No, everyone is staring at me," Juliette corrected Bonnie. "Everyone here thinks I'm some pathetic ex-girlfriend of Brad who's depressed and on the brink of a breakdown again," Juliette continued to explain. "Yeah, but we're in this together. If they're looking at you they're looking at me too, cuz I'm right her next to you." Bonnie tried to make Juliette feel better. It worked, but not too much.

"There's an empty table over there," Bonnie pointed over by the junk food line. "Looks good," Juliette approved of her friends choice. What was going to happen during this fine lunch period? Anything? Or maybe Juliette would get lucky and nothing would happen. Juliette wasn't very hungry today so she stood behind and sat at the table Bonnie chose as she went to get her lunch. This was most likely going to be pure hell for Juliette. Brad couldn't take his eyes off her across the cafeteria. He was giving her this evil, 'I'm going to kill you,' death stare. It was sending chills down Juliette's spine and she was hoping Bonnie would hurry up with her lunch so she could concentrate on a conversation with her instead of worrying about Brad.

When Bonnie finally came back Juliette nearly exploded with excitement. "Thank God you're back. Brad is creeping me out over there," Juliette said in one quick breath. Bonnie set her lunch on the table and looked in Brad's direction as she sat down. "Jeez, what kinda person looks at someone like that. I don't even think people use power stares like that in prison," Bonnie said feeling a little creeped out herself. "Don't worry about him Juliette. He's harmless. All of this is over, now," Bonnie started to eat some French fries off of her ketchup-y polyurethane plate. _It's not over. It's all just starting. This is all gonna be like some stupid capture the flag game or something. He's gonna get me back, _Juliette though to herself.

***

The next morning woke up in her bed uncomfortable and hungry. There were no smells of breakfast coming from the kitchen, which was odd. Alda always made breakfast at this time in the morning, and if not her, someone else would be called in to make breakfast. Juliette got out of bed and got ready for school. She then went downstairs to the dining room where there was no one there. This was really strange. Juliette even considered pinching herself to make sure she wasn't still asleep. Something about all this wasn't right and Juliette was starting to worry so she started to search for someone…anyone.

She found her mother sitting in the family room smoking a cigarette and had a glass of some hard looking liquor in her left hand. The room was dark. All the shades in the room were down. Shadows swallowed Juliette's mother, making it hard for her to see her. "Mom," Juliette said in a small voice over by the light switch, flipping it up and letting light spill into the room. "What's going on? Where is everyone? Where's Alda? She didn't wake me up. Is she okay?" Juliette interrogated her mother worriedly. It had just crossed Juliette's mind that there could be a serious emergency. Alda could be involved in some kind of accident. _Don't think that. You're overreacting. Maybe she just gave everyone the day off for some reason. _Juliette tried to silently assure herself.

"Oh she's just fine!" Juliette's mother said, reaching for a large white envelope on the coffee table next to her and throwing it on the floor in between herself and her daughter, the envelope seemed to be perfectly bisecting the room at that moment. Pictures flooded out of the envelope as Juliette stared at it in pure confusion. She went over to them and looked through them. What she saw shocked her. She almost couldn't put everything together. It didn't really seem to make sense. Juliette didn't know what to say or do as she shuffled through the pictures, making sure her eyes weren't deceiving her. "No," Juliette shook her head. "Yes!" Juliette's mother spat, her tone filled with complete disdain. 

"She would never do anything like this," Juliette tried to hold back a sob. All of this was like one of those cheesy soap operas. An unmarked envelope filled with those cliché black and white photos of cheating husbands pathetic wives received in the mail from either a private investigator they hired or a pissed off ex-girlfriend. Alda and Juliette's stepfather, Boris. It didn't sound right in Juliette's head. Why would Alda do this? Why would Boris do this? Well, it was obvious to Juliette why Boris would do this, after all, Juliette's mother wasn't exactly someone you could call a trophy wife. But that didn't explain why Alda would do any of this. Alda would now be referred to as the home wrecking nanny who foiled yet another marriage for Juliette's mother. _I thought this marriage would have lasted this time. _Juliette thought, calculating how many times her mother had been married. This was her fifth one.

Then Alda popped back into her mind. _I thought Alda was my best friend._ Tears started to roll down Juliette's face. She uncontrollably relinquished her grip of the photographs and dropped to her knees on the floor, fearing that she might not be able to keep her balance in the midst of all of this. Juliette was oblivious to her mother. A normal mother would want to comfort Juliette, and a normal daughter would want to comfort her mother, but that just wasn't possible. Juliette and her mother didn't have a normal relationship and it was as simple as that. All of these feelings flooded Juliette's body as she cried silently.

Juliette tried to pause her crying for a moment when she noticed the envelope the photos had been in. There was something small written on the adhesive side of the flap of the envelope. She picked it up and when she read the small writing it all instantly came together. It all made sense. _Brad. _Juliette read the name silently. This was all somehow his doing. Juliette let out a small laugh all of a sudden in the midst of her crying. This was all pathetic. _Never underestimate a rich, popular, jock how attends Johnson High and has nothing better to do with his time_, was the only thought that came to Juliette at that moment. _This has all gone too far. Ruining someone's reputation in high school is one thing, but ruining someone's life is another._

Juliette got up from the floor, trying not to look up at her mother and trying not to look down at the pictures. She was out the door and on her way to school. It was time to finish this. Juliette had had enough and she didn't want to deal with it anymore. She began to wonder how everything even came this far. It was all about Bonnie at first and now she was involved. Now Juliette was the main target. She didn't like that feeling. She only hoped things could be set right at this point, as she got into her jeep and started it. _I can only hope_.

***

Juliette couldn't believe she was going to school after what had just happened. After what she had just found out. It was still buzzing around wildly in her head. All she could think about was how Brad was ruining her time back in her home. What kind of person was Brad to do such a thing? Why would Brad go so far in all of this? What was his problem?

Juliette hadn't told Bonnie about what had happened and she didn't know if she was. She didn't want to involve Bonnie in anything unless it was absolutely unavoidable. It was time to get to the bottom of all of this. Juliette spotted Brad at his locker and decided that this was as good a time as any other to get this over with. 

"Brad, we need to talk!" Juliette said forcefully. She grabbed his arm before he got a chance to respond. She dragged him to the chemistry supply room with a surprising amount of force she didn't think she had in her. "What's this about?" Brad faked a naïve tone that was easily seen through by Juliette. "You know damn well what all of this is about," Juliette slammed the door behind them. They were alone in the room with the magnesium and copper, among other compounds around them. "No, I don't," Brad tried to sound a little more sincere, but he wasn't fooling anyone. 

"Why did you send those pictures?" Juliette asked demandingly. "Ohhhhhhhh, thaaaaaaat's what you mean," Brad was experiencing an "Aha" moment. Juliette wasn't playing games so she slapped him swiftly. He didn't seem phased by the slap. His cheesy, sly grin was still fresh on his face, but it wasn't the same as it was a couple of seconds ago. Juliette knew that Brad now knew that she meant business. "Yeah, I sent the pictures. I figured your mother should know she was being two timed. Besides, did you really think I would let you f#*k with my reputation like that?" Brad said, his voice was now steady, sturdy, and serious. 

__

Slap, Slap.

Juliette slapped and then back slapped Brad. "It's the least I can do for you Brad," Juliette said feeling a little better. Brad's cheeks were red, but he was still un-phasedby Juliette. "I learned my lesson back at that party. I don't think I'm ever going to pound on a girl after what you put me through," Brad laughed. "So, if you'll excuse me, I have to go to math," Brad maneuvered around Juliette to the closed door she had been blocking. Juliette firmly grabbed his shoulder and turned him around. "That's all you can say after what you did?" Juliette said plainly. She didn't have any juice left in her to put any _oomph_ into what she was saying. 

"See, that's the thing Jules. I didn't do anything to you, now did I? I just brought the truth about your family to the surface. If you think about it… I did you a favor," Brad said smartly. He was right, but that didn't make what he did a good thing. "Haven't you heard of ignorance being bliss? Everything was fine until you came along and screwed it all up," Juliette was still using her plain voice. "I had to get you back, Juliette. It's strange. I've never pulled off revenge and a good deed in one gesture before. It feels interesting," Brad said playfully, obviously trying to piss Juliette off. 

"Bonnie was right. Once a nerd always a nerd. You may look hot, but I think you know the cliché. It's what's inside that counts, Brad. And I think you're afraid off that. You're afraid of what's inside of you," Juliette said confidently, her voice booming with a spec of intensity. Brad laughed, but the snicker was permeated with nervousness. Juliette could see she was going in the right direction with her speech. "What's wrong Brad? You can't handle the truth? I thought you had a fondness for all things truthful," Juliette cooed. Brad was silent. "You can't be a poser forever. That kinda stuff only works in high school and maybe the first year and a half of college. You're gonna have to find who you really are someday and I think you're afraid you're gonna find your old brainy self when you do," Juliette continued. 

"Shut up!" Brad yelled. "Why can't you see it Brad? You're nothing, but a brainy, athletic, poser who doesn't know where he fits in. You don't even like hanging out with the popular crowd, do you? You just do it because it'll keep you from being picked on by all the students," Juliette finished. Brad was still silent and his red cheeks had turned pale and flimsy looking. "It's all your fault!" Brad surprised Juliette with an unexpected outburst. Juliette stood there looking confused. What was Brad talking about? Could Juliette be responsible for what Brad had become? _That wouldn't surprise me, _Juliette thought.

"Yeah you heard me! It was you, way back when, who did most of the bad mouthing and reputation bashing back when I wasn't popular!" Brad exclaimed truthfully. Juliette nodded her head with nothing but understanding and sincerity. "I know it doesn't mean much now, but I'm sorry. I was a different girl back then. I've changed, I was stupid and I'm sorry," Juliette pleaded casually and cautiously. She didn't want to upset anything in this upcoming truce Juliette could feel coming. "You're right, it doesn't mean much now…" Brad started blandly. "but what can I say? We're even, right?" Brad asked Juliette. She searched his face for any sign of a double cross or fake out. There was nothing that could lead Juliette to believe that Brad wasn't being serious about all of this.

"Right," Juliette echoed. There was nothing more to be said after that, was there? It was all over. The only thing Juliette had to worry about was her family problems now. It didn't matter that Brad had brought them to life with those photos. In fact, Brad was right, he kind of did Juliette a favor. What Juliette said was the truth, you can't live a lie, no matter how good it feels.

***

"A truce?" Bonnie laughed. "You are such a spas!" Bonnie exclaimed. "It's not that funny," Juliette said, turning her Jeep into her driveway. Bonnie and Juliette had a lot of homework to do tonight. They were going to be working for at least three hours. "This wasn't some type of paint ball tournament," Bonnie couldn't help laughing. Juliette smiled and rolled her eyes. "The important thing is that all this crap is behind us," Juliette pulled up to the house. "Amen to that!," Bonnie exclaimed. "Now let's celebrate with a heaping helping of homework!" Bonnie joked and slid out of the Jeep. Juliette just groaned at the thought of the homework that needed to be done.

Juliette and Bonnie walked into the house and Juliette had almost forgotten the state everything was left in this morning. She didn't exactly want to deal with her mother, or even think about Alda and Boris. She just wanted to go to her room with Bonnie and do some homework while snacking on something delectable. Juliette put her keys down on the small table by the door. "I'll go to the kitchen to get something to eat--what is that smell?" Juliette said holding her hand to her nose, cupping it hard to block out the smell. "What sme-" before Bonnie could finish her sentence she all of a sudden knew what Juliette was referring to. The smell hit her mouth and nose the moment she began her question and quenched her face in reaction to the stench. "I dunno what the heck that is. I've never smelled anything like that before!" Bonnie said, almost choking on her words because of the smell. 

"C'mon let's go get something to eat in the kitchen," Juliette said. "Do you have any air freshener?" Bonnie asked. "Yeah, it's in the pantry," Juliette answered. 

The family room was coming up on their way to the kitchen at the far end of the house. Juliette wondered if her mother was still sitting there with the pictures. Could Juliette's mother be that pathetic? Bonnie and Juliette were about to find out. But there was nothing that could prepare Juliette for what she was about to see next.

"Mom do you know what that smell is?" Juliette asked before entering the room, but when she did she shrieked with horror. "Oh my God!!!" Bonnie said loudly while Juliette screamed uncontrollably. Bonnie wasn't exactly screaming at what she saw, but she wanted to, because she had never seen anything like this before. 

"Nooo! Nooo!!" Juliette screamed hysterically. "What did you do??!!" Juliette screamed, but the answer was obvious as she looked down on the floor at the source of the smell. Her mother was sitting in the same spot she was this morning, but a gun had replaced the drink that was earlier poised in her hand. Alda and Boris were on the floor not moving and covered in a profusion of blood. There had to be at least a half dozen bullet holes in both of them. There was a puddle of blood on the floor that was almost as big as the family room. In fact Bonnie and Juliette were standing in it.

"That son of a bitch tried to come into my home holding that whores hand, saying he wanted to explain to me that they were in love and that he never meant to hurt me. Bullsh*t! I shot the bastard and his partner in crime," Juliette's mother said nonchalantly. "What the hell is wrong with you!" Juliette said, still hysterical. She could barely get the words out. Her tears were doing an excellent job in clogging her throat. 

"I'm calling the police," Bonnie said deadly. She was in a state of shock as she ran to the nearest phone, trying hard not to slip on the abundance of blood everywhere.

"I hope you get the chair for this," Juliette shook her head and sobbed violently. "I'd kill you myself, but I'm not you!" Juliette spat. She turned around to find Bonnie. She wanted to wait outside for the cops. She had this feeling she was going to pass out if she stayed here any longer.

"As long as I'm getting the chair I might as well finish all of this," Juliette heard her mother. _What is that supposed to mean? _Juliette asked herself quickly. She wasn't sure if her mother was going to kill herself or something else. Juliette spun around to see her mother cocking the gun back and aiming it at her. 

"You have no idea what you've put this family Juliette! All this bulimia bullsh*t put me through hell. Didn't you even care about the families name?" 'mother' asked her daughter. Juliette didn't answer. She just stood there scared. She was starting to wonder what was taking Bonnie so long on the phone. "Put the gun down, mother," Juliette said instead. 

"There are no survivors in this family, Juliette. We're all gonna die here," said Juliette's mother. It was time for Juliette to get smart. "Oh my God! Boris!" Juliette screamed, her eyes were wide and she was staring hard behind her mother. "What? No I killed him," Juliette's mother spun around, relieved to see nothing, her heart racing. "Stupid bitch!" Juliette kicked her mother in the spine sending her to the floor and through the blood, her gun sailing out of her hand.

Juliette ran out of the room into the kitchen to find Bonnie, who was just hanging up the phone. "The police are on their way," Bonnie said. Juliette grabbed her hand and started to run and dragged Bonnie behind her. "We have to go. That bitch just tried to kill me!" Juliette said hurriedly as they both tried to run to the front door. 

It wasn't going to be that easy to get out of the house though. As the two girls passsed the family room again Juliette's mother popped out and pistol whipped both Bonnie and Juliette. Bonnie fell to the floor, but Juliette seemed to be fine. Juliette knocked the pistol out of her mothers hand once more. Her mother grabbed her by the hair and dragged her into the family room and then threw her on the floor with all the blood. Juliette was now covered in blood like her mother. 

Juliette was then pounced on by her mother and she began to strangle Juliette. Juliette tried screaming, but no words escaped Juliette's mouth. "Just die you good for nothing girl!" Juliette's mother snarled. The most Juliette could let out was a whimper. She could feel herself loosing consciousness. This was how it was going to end. Juliette was going to die in a bloody room with Alda and Boris' smelling, rotting bodies. This wasn't what Juliette thought coming home from Mt. Horizon was going to be like.

Then there was hope. _Smash! _With that Juliette's mother relinquished her grip and fell to the side into the blood. "They just don't make chairs like they used to," Bonnie said, looking at the unconscious and bloody mother next to Juliette. Bonnie extended her hand to help Juliette up. "Thanks Bonnie," Juliette coughed. "No prob, I wasn't going to let you die on me girl." Bonnie gave Juliette a hug. Juliette broke down and cried there on her best friends shoulders. "It's okay Jules, it's all over now," Bonnie comforted Juliette. "Everything's going to be fine."

***

My father sent me to a clinic in the valley. He was in Europe when I called to tell him what happened. He put me in here after my bulimia relapse. The doctors said it was normal for that to happen, so I'm not worried. I just want to get rid of this problem. I don't wanna be in here forever. 

Dad doesn't visit, but Bonnie comes twice a week. I've made some friends here, but they're nothing compared to the ones at Horizon. I read in the newspaper that Horizon reopened. It doesn't really matter though. I would only be able to stay there for a few months because I'm turning eighteen soon. It's good that Horizon is open again though. I'm gonna go back one day to see Peter and Sophie. I doubt any of the others went back to stay since most of them turned eighteen already. Auggie turns eighteen in three weeks. 

Anyway, there's a surprise for me today. The receptionist said I have a couple of special visitors. I'm excited, nervous, and curious. I have no idea who's coming. 

-Juliette-

***

"Juliette? Some people are here to see you," a young male nurse dressed in light blue scrubs said. A nurse Juliette had a small crush on since her arrival last month. Juliette peaked from behind a school book she was reading on her bed and smiled big. She had butterflies in her stomach; not only because of her surprise visit, but because of how handsome the nurse in his early twenties was. "Okay Tracy," Juliette closed her school book and got up from her bed to follow Tracy to the fifth floor lobby. 

"You look nice today Juliette," Tracy complimented. "Why thank you Tracy, and I must say you are looking fetching yourself in those scrubs," Juliette flirted jokingly. "How do you pull it off everyday?" Juliette asked. "It's all in the body language," Tracy joked, but didn't flirt back. Tracy was only a couple of years older than her, so it wasn't too impossible that the two got together when she turned eighteen.

The two got to the reception desk and Juliette signed a sheet that documented that Juliette and her visitors met. "Your visitors are in the lounge," Tracy said. A flurry of warmth spread through Juliette's stomach. "Okay thanks," Juliette put the sign in sheet pen down and strolled the short distance to the lounge. She took a deep breath and ran her fingers through her hair before she turned the corner. This was it. The mystery visitors were about to be revealed. 

Juliette turned the corner and was instantly hit with surprise. "Oh my God!" Juliette said. "No way," Juliette said to her three old friends. "You look great Juliette," Sophie said warmly. Juliette ran over to Sophie and gave her a huge tight hug. 

"Don't forget the guys," Peter said, opening his arms, Juliette bounced from Sophie's arms to Peter's. "How you doing Jules?" he asked her in his arms. "I'm fighting," Juliette answered. Peter smiled. 

"That's my girl," a young voice said next to Peter. Juliette let go of Peter and approached the dark haired teen who was smiling slyly. "And who said I was your girl, Auggie?," Juliette asked, trying her best not to explode with happiness by trying to play it cool with her ex-boyfriend and very good friend. "You'll always be the girl for me, Jules," Auggie answered, still smiling. "Is that right?" Juliette played. "Always and forever," said Auggie. "Well, as long as it's a done deal, why don't we seal it with a kiss," Juliette suggested. "Sounds good to me," Auggie answered. 

And kiss they did. Well…more like made out for about two minutes. Sophie and Peter were both uncomfortable watching, although Sophie was still smiling. She was a crazy hopeless romantic and she loved the classic guy gets girl scenario. 

As Juliette kissed Auggie she started to think about what this meant. Were they back together or were they just kissing. _I have the rest of my life to figure that out. Just enjoy the kiss for now you idiot. _Juliet said to herself.

"Okay, okay, break it up, you two," Peter joked. Juliette and Auggie ceased and Auggie wiped Juliette's lip gloss from his mouth. They were both blushing. "You guys wanna see my room?" Juliette said abruptly, but happily. Everyone just looked at one another. "Sure," Sophie answered and with that Juliette led the threesome to her room.

"I like it," Auggie said walking over to an Evanescence poster. "I love this band," He commented on the poster. "I know, they're great. I want to see them in concert," Juliette sat on her bed. "So how long are you guys in town?" Juliette asked.

"Long enough for us to persuade you to come back to Horizon," Peter answered. "What?" Juliette asked. "What would be the point in going back?" Juliette asked. "I'm almost eighteen, I would just have to leave shortly after," Juliette was a little confused. "Yeah, but me and Sophie were thinking about something that could keep Horizon open," Peter sat down on a chair that was next to Juliette's closet. "Oh, and what's that?" Juliette asked. 

"We want you, Auggie, Scott, Ezra, Daisy, Kat, and Shelby to be counselors there," Peter said. Juliette was surprised by what Peter was suggesting. "Most of the counselors don't want to work at Horizon anymore so we thought it would be a good idea to bring in a younger generation of counselors to do the job. Peter and I thought you seven were the best qualified out of all the previous attendees at Horizon," said Sophie. This shocked Juliette even more. 

"How many out of the seven are doing it?" Juliette asked. "Everyone except Ezra and Kat," Peter answered. "They're going to college in the Fall," Sophie said. All of this sounded great to Juliette compared to college, although she still wanted to go to college some day. "You don't have to do it forever. You can try it for a little while and see how you like it," Sophie suggested. Juliette nodded slowly. "I think I wanna try it," Juliette said. 

"I knew she'd say yes!" Auggie explained. He was leaning against a wall next to Juliette's desk in the corner of the room. Juliette only smiled at Auggie's enthusiasm. 

"Well have to get your bipolar disorder under control first, though," Peter said. Juliette looked at Peter quickly. "How did you know about that?" she asked. "I talked with your doctor."

"She says you're doing better," Peter offered. Sophie sat next to Juliette on her bed. "You've been through a lot this year," she said to Juliette. Juliette nodded slowly again. "I wanna help people." Juliette got out of her bed. "People who have parents like mine are all over this country and they're just like me," Juliette stared out her window. "The least I can do is try to guide them in the right direction," Juliette smiled. It was a sunny day outside. "I think I wanna be like you guys," Juliette turned and smiled at Sophie and Peter and then gave Aggie a special smile just for him. There was silence as the group took it all in. It was time to make a difference. _No one should have to go through anything close to what I've gone through. _Juliet thought to herself. _No one_.

***

Also by me: 

The Normal One: Available in the Roswell section

Look for my new "Once and Again" fan fiction, coming soon!!! 

__


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